Different

Title: Different
Author: Kim Dare
Cover Artist: Trace Edward Zaber
Publisher: Amber Quill Press
Buy Link:   Buy Link Different, Amber Quill Press
Genre: Contemporary M/M Romance
Length: Short Story (13,000 words)
Rating: 5 stars

A Guest Review by Sammy

Review Summary: A hot little short story that is over too soon!

Blurb: Matthew and Stuart have been dating for more than five months and Stuart thinks things are going well—right up until the moment Matthew suggests they try something different, the kind of different that involves bondage, spanking and leather.

Matthew’s been building up to making this suggestion for weeks, dropping subtle hints and hoping Stuart won’t completely freak out at the mention of kink. Now, with Matthew’s desires out in the open, all he can do is hope that introducing something different will make their relationship perfect rather than destroy it completely…

Review: First, Different by Kim Dare has just a tease, a mere hint of BDSM so if you are concerned it may be to intense, worry no further. Secondly, it is short–very short but oh so good! In just a few chapters, author Kim Dare manages once again to give us a rather complete view of two very interesting men and their life together. While Matthew has restrained himself, giving Stuart time to relax into their relationship, he has also been waiting for the opportunity to try out his secret passion on his boyfriend, a little bondage and kinky fun in the bedroom. What he does not know is that Stuart is not a novice to the world of BDSM. In fact, Stuart had a very intense and most disastrous introduction to this kind of kink by someone who made it clear that none of Stuart’s wishes were important. Rather, it was the Dom who schooled Stuart who was to be satisfied and he left a lasting impression, and it was not a good one, by any means.

So what is so great about this little sip that warrants five stars and you spending your hard earned cash on it? Well, first off, it is a complete story. Kim Dare has an uncanny ability to plop us right down into the action and reveal her characters with such depth that you never feel cheated. Somehow, she manages to do away with exposition and build up and yet keep you invested in what is happening to her men. I never feel cheated when I read a short by her, instead I feel fully satisfied.

Also, I find the scenarios she chooses to use for her short stories utterly believable. It’s as if she opens a window into the lives of her characters and invites us in to catch a glimpse of their day to day life. While I knew so little about Stuart and Matthew, nonetheless, I felt drawn to them, worried that poor Stuart could not rise above his past, concerned that Matthew would move too fast and lose Stuart’s trust before it was even established.

Lastly she develops a real chemistry between her men and does it remarkably fast. There is no dawdling in a Kim Dare quickie! She forces us to leap right in to the action and stokes the heat level on her stories to keep us hooked! I thoroughly enjoyed Different by Kim Dare. Was it short? Oh most assuredly. Was it Interesting? I really thought so. Was it hot? Smoking…yes, indeed, smoking hot!